> What are "pocket protectors". Here in Scotland, I have never heard
> of them!

Tim:

They're soft plastic pouches that fit into your shirt pockets and
into which you put your pens... The idea is that they'll protect your
shirt from ink stains if your pens leak.

The stereotypical pocket-protector wearers were engineers working for
NASA during the Cold War... Their pocket protectors were as much a
part of their uniform as the short-sleeved white shirts and the
narrow, too-short neckties.

While pocket protectors unquestionably serve a useful purpose --
just about everyone has had a shirt ruined by a leaking pen --
they've been so long associated with stereotypically unstylish,
socially-inept engineers that only the MOST compulsive and
anal-retentive among us are willing to be seen wearing one.

It's not just that they give the wearer the unflattering look of
someone who's terrified of a little inkblot on his shirt; there's
also a certain stigma attached to the fact that no individual has
ever actually PURCHASED a pocket protector... They're generally
imprinted with some engineering-related company's name and given away
as promotional items.

It's sort of ironic, really... People who buy expensive shirts that
might actually be WORTH protecting usually have enough fashion sense
not to wear pocket protectors, while people who have no fashion sense
(and are therefore willing to wear pocket protectors) generally buy
shirts so cheap that they're essentially disposable anyway.

Have you heard the phrases "Full Cleveland" and "Half Cleveland"?
They refer to the peculiar style of clothing often worn by golfers
(here in America, at least): A Full Cleveland is white shoes and a
white belt; a Half Cleveland is white shoes OR a white belt.

I've been thinking that the wearing of a pocket protector alone
should be called a "Half Canaveral"... A "Full Canaveral" would
involve wearing the pocket protector AND a pair of broken eyeglasses
held together by a paper clip and a bit of scotch tape.

> They're soft plastic pouches that fit into your shirt pockets and
> into which you put your pens... The idea is that they'll protect your
> shirt from ink stains if your pens leak.

They can also protect the shirt from having automatic pencils poke through
the bottom of the pocket (at least I think they would--I do know I've had
pencils poke through when I WASN'T using the protector)

> The stereotypical pocket-protector wearers were engineers working for
> NASA during the Cold War... Their pocket protectors were as much a
> part of their uniform as the short-sleeved white shirts and the
> narrow, too-short neckties.
> They're generally
> imprinted with some engineering-related company's name and given away
> as promotional items.

Or as identification badge-holders; assuming the standard attire has a
pocket there, such things can hold ID badges much more nicely than the
clip-that-never-quite-fits-anyplace thingie.

> I've been thinking that the wearing of a pocket protector alone
> should be called a "Half Canaveral"... A "Full Canaveral" would
> involve wearing the pocket protector AND a pair of broken eyeglasses
> held together by a paper clip and a bit of scotch tape.

I thought a Half-Canaveral was either a pocket protector or pens actually
in the pocket, and a Full-Canaveral was a pocket protector that actually
had pens in it. Of course, I usually put pens/pencils in my hip pocket
where I invariably sit on them, but at least I've had the luck that none
have leaked.

It's not just that they give the wearer the unflattering look of someone
who's terrified of a little inkblot on his shirt; there's also a certain
stigma attached to the fact that no individual has ever actually
PURCHASED a pocket protector... They're generally imprinted with some
engineering-related company's name and given away as promotional items.

I *like* pocket protectors as trade-show giveaways - they're slightly more
clever than the average giveaway. A pen or screwdriver with a name/logo is
sort of ho hum. A "nerd pack" with pocket protector, screwdriver, and pen
(all with name/logo) is a nod to technical culture, such as it is.

I wonder about the original purpose, though. Ink blots seem unlikely. The
thought that they'd keep you from drawing on your shirt as you put things
away, but I'd bet on the idea being to keep the points on those well
sharpened pencils from poking through either you or your shirt. Or maybe
chalk for scribbling on those blackboards...

The only job I ever had that required "dress shirt and tie" was still
software, and didn't have a lot of pencils and pens floating around, so
I never wore one officially...

I think you've got part of it, but I've asked people who actually used them
regularly - pocket protectors are to help you get dressed quickly - you can
have one full of junk(pens, pencils, screwdrivers..) and slide it into the
pocket of your shirt(like when you need to change your shirt, and you
choose one that was dirty a week ago but doesn't seem to smell so bad today).

> I wonder about the original purpose, though. Ink blots seem
> unlikely.

Not with fountain pens...

> The thought that they'd keep you from drawing on your shirt as you
> put things away, but I'd bet on the idea being to keep the points
> on those well sharpened pencils from poking through either you or
> your shirt. Or maybe chalk for scribbling on those blackboards...

Yeah. Pocket protectors have always been worn almost exclusively
by engineers, even though members of most other professions also
use pens. The reason may have to do with the fact that many
engineers carry a LOT of pens -- different colors, etc. -- along
with small screwdrivers, pencils, and other sharp items.

Engineers also USE their pens a lot more than most other
people... I mean, when's the last time your lawyer said, "Here,
let me draw it for you."?

At 09:52 PM 10/17/97 -0500, you wrote:
>> They're soft plastic pouches that fit into your shirt pockets and
>> into which you put your pens... The idea is that they'll protect your
>> shirt from ink stains if your pens leak.

I got to thinking. The reason the young nerds don't know what a pocket
protector is is because companies give out free T-shirts. Obviously the
marketing types think T-shirts are cool. And Microsoft is the biggest
violator!

If they _really_ wanted to market to us, they'd be giving away free sandals
or white button-up shirts. You know, the kind that are designed especially
to hold pocket protectors.

>The stereotypical pocket-protector wearers were engineers working for
>NASA during the Cold War... Their pocket protectors were as much a
>part of their uniform as the short-sleeved white shirts and the
>narrow, too-short neckties.

>While pocket protectors unquestionably serve a useful purpose --
>just about everyone has had a shirt ruined by a leaking pen --
>they've been so long associated with stereotypically unstylish,
>socially-inept engineers that only the MOST compulsive and
>anal-retentive among us are willing to be seen wearing one.

>It's not just that they give the wearer the unflattering look of
>someone who's terrified of a little inkblot on his shirt; there's
>also a certain stigma attached to the fact that no individual has
>ever actually PURCHASED a pocket protector... They're generally
>imprinted with some engineering-related company's name and given away
>as promotional items.

Stigma? I thought it was a recognition badge.

>It's sort of ironic, really... People who buy expensive shirts that
>might actually be WORTH protecting usually have enough fashion sense
>not to wear pocket protectors, while people who have no fashion sense
>(and are therefore willing to wear pocket protectors) generally buy
>shirts so cheap that they're essentially disposable anyway.

There are shirts that are fixable?

>Have you heard the phrases "Full Cleveland" and "Half Cleveland"?
>They refer to the peculiar style of clothing often worn by golfers
>(here in America, at least): A Full Cleveland is white shoes and a
>white belt; a Half Cleveland is white shoes OR a white belt.

No, but there's a white shoe brigade in Queensland, OZ. Seemed to refer to
a certain group of ppl with erm, 'unwholesome' political influence.

>I've been thinking that the wearing of a pocket protector alone
>should be called a "Half Canaveral"... A "Full Canaveral" would
>involve wearing the pocket protector AND a pair of broken eyeglasses
>held together by a paper clip and a bit of scotch tape.

A nuisance - don't use glasses in that range - I can focus as close as the
end of my nose. Its distance thats the problem. Of course, engineers
*always* use AR coatings on their glasses for the extra few % of
transmittance - regardless of the fact that they take fingerprints like
crazy...

>I think you've got part of it, but I've asked people who actually used them
>regularly - pocket protectors are to help you get dressed quickly - you can
>have one full of junk(pens, pencils, screwdrivers..) and slide it into the
>pocket of your shirt(like when you need to change your shirt, and you
>choose one that was dirty a week ago but doesn't seem to smell so bad
today).

Ha! Someone who 'airs' their shirts! (on the premise that if you don't
wear the same shirt 2 days running, ppl won't know it hasn't been thru
laundry). Hmmm. Bachelor?

On the pencils issue - getting 'pricked' by a 0.35mm pencil is painful -
akin to carrying a hypodermic in ones pocket (I imagine<g>)

>At 09:52 PM 10/17/97 -0500, you wrote:
>>> They're soft plastic pouches that fit into your shirt pockets and
>>> into which you put your pens... The idea is that they'll protect your
>>> shirt from ink stains if your pens leak.
>
>I got to thinking. The reason the young nerds don't know what a pocket
>protector is is because companies give out free T-shirts. Obviously the
>marketing types think T-shirts are cool. And Microsoft is the biggest
>violator!

Hmmm. There's *no* way I'd go out wearing a Tshirt (unless I had another
shirt over it)
To put it delicately, they don't flatter my figure <VBG>

Do marketing types wear Tshirts - no! They wear SUITS!

MetaCrawler (search engine web site) Have a survey, with a Tshirt
competition for inducement. The sizes were (I think) XXL and MetaXXL . <g>

On Fri, 17 Oct 1997, William Chops Westfield wrote:
>
> The only job I ever had that required "dress shirt and tie" was still
> software, and didn't have a lot of pencils and pens floating around, so
> I never wore one officially...

I switched to black jeans to avoid the problem of pen leaks... a
pocket protector just doesn't work with jeans :).

Pierce Nichols

"I have a work order for the immediate demolition of your reality tunnel."

HA! Bob Blick has hit the nail squarely on the head, and revealed himself to
boot. It is speed indeed, and the need to keep all that stuff together, that
drives the utility of a nerd pack. Follow this essential truth a little
further and you'll find the true reason that Alan Turing chained his coffee
cup to the radiator next to his desk. It wasn't a sign of his underlying
paranoia and impending breakdown. He just knew that the damn thing would be
there when he wanted a cup, instead of sitting on top of the cpu inside a
cabinet in the next building.

Hi
Well, thanks for the explainations. I have never seen anyone in the UK
wear these even at trade shows. At Robotix 97 in Glasgow I saw none either
and that was an international show with all the best robotics experts world
wide. Maybe they were embarassed to wear them!
Anyway, they sound really useful, my shirt pockets are always full of
sharp things like propelling pencils etc. Maybe a UK licence is needed?

> They're soft plastic pouches that fit into your shirt pockets and
> into which you put your pens... The idea is that they'll protect your
> shirt from ink stains if your pens leak.
>
> The stereotypical pocket-protector wearers were engineers working for
> NASA during the Cold War... Their pocket protectors were as much a
> part of their uniform as the short-sleeved white shirts and the
> narrow, too-short neckties.
>
> While pocket protectors unquestionably serve a useful purpose --
> just about everyone has had a shirt ruined by a leaking pen --
> they've been so long associated with stereotypically unstylish,
> socially-inept engineers that only the MOST compulsive and
> anal-retentive among us are willing to be seen wearing one.
>
> It's not just that they give the wearer the unflattering look of
> someone who's terrified of a little inkblot on his shirt; there's
> also a certain stigma attached to the fact that no individual has
> ever actually PURCHASED a pocket protector... They're generally
> imprinted with some engineering-related company's name and given away
> as promotional items.
>
> Have you heard the phrases "Full Cleveland" and "Half Cleveland"?
> They refer to the peculiar style of clothing often worn by golfers
> (here in America, at least): A Full Cleveland is white shoes and a
> white belt; a Half Cleveland is white shoes OR a white belt.
>
> I've been thinking that the wearing of a pocket protector alone
> should be called a "Half Canaveral"... A "Full Canaveral" would
> involve wearing the pocket protector AND a pair of broken eyeglasses
> held together by a paper clip and a bit of scotch tape.